And So It Begins

This weekend we got our first taste of what "fixing up" a house is going to be like. The appraiser had a few conditions for the house to pass the FHA inspection, like some of the electrical had to be fixed and the outside of the house painted. So Saturday we went up to Logan and my Dad and sister came down from Idaho to help fix the electric and get the house prepped to paint. We are going to have a PAINTING PALOOZA this Thursday and try to get the whole house painted in one day. Jon's uncle doesn't think we can do it (which is probably true) and so he has volunteered Jon's entire exteneded family (who will be up in Logan for the 4th of July) to finish whatever we don't finish so that we can go up to Idaho and celebrate my b-day (the 4th of July) in Idaho with my family.

We are closing on the house in Logan next Tuesday, provided all goes as planned. It still needs a lot of work but I don't know when Jon is going to have the time to do it! This month is going to be CRAZY! First off, we have a week of family vacations, then Jon has a three day back packing trip with his scouts, and then he is going to Valmy, Nevada for the last two weeks of July to set up a pilot plant for work! CRAZY.

It looks like I will be doing (and organizing) a lot of the work that needs to be done on the house-- like painting, carpets, windows, tile, refinishing floors, etc, etc, etc... Actually, I am kind of excited about it. I really like projects and it might be fun to show Jon that I can be a handy woman too. I've started practicing-- the other day my wheat grinder broke and I took it apart and fixed it without even having to call Jon! Whoo- hoo!

So if anyone has any advice about home repairs, remodeling, and such... let me know... I'm going to need all the help I can get!

Here are some pictures of the house-- I'll try to get some better ones so you can see it in all its tacky glory!

View of the dining room from the living room-- the pad is for a wood burning stove, which we will put back in ad the weird white thing on the side of the wall is coming down (does anyone have any idea what that is for?)

Living Room-- I still can't figure out what would posses a person to choose this carpet!

One of the upstairs rooms.

No Wonder My Back Hurts

I took Asher to his 6 month check up today and he weighs 18lbs 11 oz and is 28.8 inches long. This is why I feel like someone has taken a bat to me by the end of the day! Hauling that little brick around is getting hard. I think it is time to throw some of the excess weight overboard (ie. the infant car seat) and start packing light (ie. more slings-- I made a maya wrap that works great for slinging him onto my hip!).

Since I can't download any of my new pictures!!! Wah! I am going to post this old picture of Asher. It was taken when he was 4 months old at JC Penny's. I don't know that I will have his picture taken at a studio again for awhile because they really rope you in. I went in there with the intention of only buying the picture I had a coupon for-- little did I know they take advantage of your motherly instincts to sell you EVERY picture! Tricky Tricky. Beware.

Eggs and Butter

Last Saturday Jon and I took Asher to the Farmer's Market in his bike trailer. He isn't quite big enough to fit in it yet, so we strapped his car seat into it and took off. He really likes riding in it-- I have the cutest pictures but our laptop is on its last legs and the USB port isn't working, so no pictures till we get something else figured out!

Anyway-- we bought some really fun things at the Farmer's Market-- including-- FRESH CHICKEN EGGS! I really have my heart set on having chickens next summer (if this house we want in Logan works out) and have been reading up on them. I thought that I better see if fresh eggs are worth all the work-- and they are! I read in one of my chicken books that you can tell an egg is fresh by how tall the egg yolk stands up when you crack it. These fresh ones looked like eye balls they were so tall! They really tasted a lot better than store bought ones.

We also bought a tomato plant, which we made the mistake of putting next to Asher on the ride home. When we got home he was happily chopping away on a tomato leaf. I hope that it wasn't toxic.

We also bought this



a French Butter Dish!

One of my friends has one and I have been coveting it for awhile. It is really neat. You put the butter in the lid and then put it into the bottom which is filled with water. The water makes a seal around the butter. You can keep the butter on the counter keeping it fresh and at the perfect spread-ability softness. I LOVE real butter, but HATE it when it is too hard or goes rancid. The potter who made it also makes these



It is an egg separator!
We didn't buy one, but that I thought they were really cute. You crack the egg into it and then pour the egg whites out of its mouth. Maybe when I get my chickens I'll have to get one of these!

A Few Thoughts about Nicknames

When I was pregnant I really liked the name Ezekiel for a boy-- and I wanted to nickname him "Zeke". When I told Jon the first thing he said was "Zeke the Geek!" So that one hit the fan pretty fast. We didn't even try to think of rhyming names for Asher till after he was born, and then we realized that lots of things rhyme with his name. We started making a list and realized that all the things that rhymed with his name were violent or obscene-- Basher, Crasher, Dasher, Flasher, Hasher, Masher, Slasher, Splasher, Trasher (see if you can come up with anymore!). They aren't exactly the type of nicknames that someone trying to make fun of you on the playground would use. It is hard to bully a kid whose nickname is ASHER THE TRASHER BASHER SLASHER. So much for peace education-- I sure hope those names don't go to his head.

Speaking of nicknames, I have the habit of giving strange nicknames to people. I don't ever "think" about them, they just seem to evolve somehow. I've called my little sister Brittney, "Babes" for as long as either one of us can remember. My other sister is "Tick Tock" because it rhymes with "Hilary Dillary Dock... Tick Tock" and Jon's pet name is "Sir". So far Asher has had quite a few nicknames, here are what my subconscious mind has come up with so far...

Bub Bub-- This was a natural derivative of "baby boy" which was too hard for my post-labor brain to say. My favorite phrase to say is "Bub Bub take tub tub with Da Da?" Ha! That makes me laugh every time!

Pash Pash-- Believe it or not, I use this one a lot and I can never explain where it came from. Maybe I should make up a story.

Jiga-Jiga-- This is strangest one and came about because I like to make Asher smile by giggling his legs back and forth when he is lying down and saying 'jiga jiga jiga" and I guess somehow it turned into a nickname.

Ash-- this is the one that makes the most logical sense and the one that Jon and other people use. The other day at church this cute little old man... who is deaf as... well.. an old man... was really confused because he thought I had named my son Ashley. Oh, well... I guess that might be the one nickname he might get made fun of on the playground.

This REALLY upsets me!

Yesterday California began allowing same-sex couples to be legally married. This decision by the Supreme Court overruled the 2000 ballot measure in which 61% of California voters approved Proposition 22, that said "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid and recognized in California."

The vote was 4-3 in the Supreme Court. It really makes me upset that ONE vote of a Supreme Court justice who favors same-sex marriage, overrules 61% votes from Californians who DON'T want same-sex marriage. To me this seems like the court has WAY overstepped its boundaries. If the majority of voters voted for something it seems to me that it is a blatant disregard for the Constitution to allow ONE person to override that! Who said that the Supreme Court should even be allowed to make law. The very first sentence of the Constitution says that ALL legislative authority is VESTED in the Congress. So, it’s Congress who“makes law” and they can not delegate their lawmaking power to anyone. California shouldn't have allowed same-sex marriages to take place without it either becoming an official law (passed by Congress) or amended into the State Constitution! It really makes me upset when courts take too much Judicial freedom and make "laws" that they have no authority to make.

I sincerely hope that voters are able to overturn the ruling in the November election, and that if they do the decision will be respected!

Those who believe the family is ordained of God and that marriage between man and women is essential to God's eternal plan, REALLY need to stand up and speak out to protect marriage and family. I know several people who are in same-sex relationships and they are good people. I respect that they have their freedom to choose how to live, but I firmly believe that marriage should ONLY be between a man and woman. Children have the divine right to be born into home with both a father and a mother. I see this step by California as another evidence of how the value of the family is disintegrating in our society and it really makes me sad.

Sometimes it feels like everything I believe strongly in and cherish is mocked and destroyed by the "world", I hate feeling like everything is out-of-control and I can't do a thing to stop it! What type of world will my babies inherit?

Thank You to the Dads in My Life!

Thank you to:

MY DAD



For teaching me how to love the gospel and Jesus Christ, to work hard, how to serve and how to forgive. I will be FOREVER grateful for this amazing man and his wonderful support! I don't think that there are many dads who when their 14 year-old daughter tells them that she wants to become a falconer and needs to build a mews (a hawk house) says "You pay for it, I'll help you build it" and doesn't complain when a year later when there is a falcon living in her bedroom (and in the mews).
By the way-- this is a picture of Asher with his onesie on backward. We left Grandpa to babysit for a few hours and this is what we came back to!

MY DAD-IN-LAW



I will be eternally grateful to this wonderful man for raising Jon to be the man that I fell in love with. He taught him, especially by example, how to honor the priesthood, how to have a powerful and firm testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, how to treat women well and how to work hard. It has been wonderful to be a part of his family and to watch his example of strength and kindness.

MY BABY'S DAD



I don't want to risk getting too mushy, but I think this picture says it all. He just couldn't be a better father or husband. I thought I was getting a good deal when I married him, but I took him home, opened him up and realized I had won the lottery. He just gets better the more I get to know him. I love you sir.

Happy BLOG-IVERSARY to me!

Today is my first blog-iversary! Exactly one year ago today I resurrected my blog from its inactive state to become the glorious creation you know behold! What an AMAZING year this has been. So much has happened. On my very first post last year Jon and I had just graduated from BYU, we had just moved into the apartment we are in now, and we had just barely announced that Buster (Asher's womb name) was going to be born in December. Now one year later, Buster-- Asher-- is here and almost 6 months old, Jon is starting graduate school, I am getting certified to be a doula, and we are buying a house in Logan! Wow! I can't believe how much changes in one year. It will be exciting to see where my life will be this time next year. It just seems to keep getting better and better.

Thank you to everyone who has participated in my blog (especially if you leave comments!). It has been SO wonderful to be able to share my ideas, my life and my adventures with you and to hear about yours in return. I want to say thank you to all my loyal (or not so loyal) readers by holding a drawing.

So if you want to be in the drawing for a gift certificate to Barnes & Noble leave me a comment (make sure you put your name on it) telling me who you would meet if you could spend 15 min with any person (real or fictional) in the history of the world. I will randomly choose a winner's name from out of a hat on Monday morning!

Just to be fair I'll tell you who I'd meet: Eve, I'd like to get her version of what really happened in the garden. I think it would clear up quite a few things.

Things I want to write down

Since I am using this blog as a scrapbook/journal/hey everybody look at me page, I want to write down some of the things I don't want to forget about Asher.

1- I love it when....

• he smiles from behind his pacifier
• he pulls his pacifier out of his own mouth, starts to cry and then looks at me like I did it
• he gets so excited about a toy that he hits himself in the head with it and then starts to cry (not that I like the crying part, but it is kind of funny!)
• he is tired and upset but still tries to laugh through his cries
• he tries to stick his hands in my mouth
• he laughs really hard when I "eat" his tummy
• he gives me unexpected "kisses"-- which consist of him opening his mouth and putting it against my cheek, arm, leg, or whatever is available

2- I am amazed when...

• he bangs a toy on the table or splashes in the water and realizes that he can influence and change the world around him.
  
• he looks at himself in the mirror and realizes that he exists and that he is an individual
  
• he cries when I leave the room because he doesn't know that if he can't see me I still exist
  
• he smiles and laughs when I come back into the room because he was afraid I had disappeared
  
• picking up something is a full body experience, with his arms, legs, head and torso all working equally hard
  
• I can understand his babbles and we have "conversations"
  

3- I hope I never forget...

• how his face lights up when he sees me or someone else smile
• how he flaps his arms and bounces up and down when he is happy
• what if feels like to have him nurse, stop mid gulp and look up at me with huge blue eyes that say "I love you Mom"
• the sound of him squealing, talking, eating, and laughing. Especially the short breathy "heh" laugh he gives when he wants attention.
• the amazing experience of labor and giving birth, especially the moment I felt him leave my body and flow into my arms
  
• the overwhelming love I feel for all babies, children, and mothers
  
• that he is a child of God

FINALLY I found socks that stay on!

This definitely deserves a post, because today after 5 1/2 months of searching for some sort of footwear that my nursling would not kick off, I found socks that are "kick-proof". And who'd a thunk they'd be the cheap-o Faded Glory ankle socks from Wal-Mart? I've tried EVERY other type of sock and shoe and Asher has kicked it off within 5 min, but these ones have been staying on! Yipee! The only other socks that I've found that work are the super tight Jymboree socks, but they cost about $8 a pair (no joke! For socks... blah!). So I thought I'd never say this, but I finally found something that Wal-Mart is good for.

Snail Memories

This morning I went for a walk in the rain with Asher. I am taking care of a dog, a cat, and a WHOLE lot of fish, for the the lady I visit teach, and her house is just down the street. It was such a beautiful morning and the smell of the rain was amazing. I was pushing Asher down the sidewalk and saw two huge snails right in the middle of the sidewalk.

Seeing them gave me a sense of nostalgia, and I remembered that when I was younger I use to LOVE snails. We lived in a little townhouse in Murray and I was about 6 years old. I would spend hours searching our backyard and the yards of our neighbors for snails that I put in a big peanut butter jar. I had a big collection and I loved to watch them and poke their little antennae so they would shrivel up. I even tried to make a business out of my snail obsession. The little old lady down the street, who had a beautiful garden, paid me 1 penny for each snail I escorted off her premise in my peanut butter jar. I became the host and announcer for "snail racing", in which my brother and I (and other neighborhood children) would set our snails against each other and make bets on whose snail would cross the chalk line first. I have lots of memories of squatting on the porch for a long time, urging stray snails to go in straight lines. I don't ever remember seeing our snails finish a race.

These memories flashed through my mind this morning when I stumbled across the snails. For just a moment I remembered what it felt like to be a little girl. I remembered the unbound wonder that I felt at the simplest things, and the great joy that a peanut butter can full of snails can bring. I remembered what it felt like to discover something new, and I remembered that the world is remarkably simple. There is beauty, joy and miracles all around me, sometimes it just takes opening my eyes at little bit wider, slowing down a little bit more, and paying attention to the small things in this world. Thank you snails.

Two REALLY Funny Videos-- I Promise

How Aware Are You?



Warning: This is Infectious!

A Solid Experience

We gave Asher solid food for the first time this week. After this whole biting thing (which he has pretty much stopped doing- whew) I decided that he was probably ready for something a little more substantial. We tried giving him some avocado when we went out to eat for Anna's graduation but he didn't really like it. I think that there were two problems 1) we didn't mash it up enough and he kept trying to gag it out of his mouth and 2) we were trying to use a HUGE metal spoon and I think it was too much for him to handle.
On Saturday we gave him some rice cereal and he LOVED it! He kept trying to attack the spoon and wanted to grab it and feed himself. I think he is going to have that "Mom, I can do it myself" type personality! It was really funny to watch him eat, more of it got on his bib than in his mouth and his face kept getting lower and closer to his tray when he ate. It is really a whole lot of fun to feed him "real" food. Today I think I am going to try giving him some bananas.